Upon a Kiss
by Mered
Summary: It had started out as a simple (but extremely pleasant kiss). Now it was something…different, stronger. And Ed found he didn't dislike it.


A complication had started months back when Edward, with his right arm newly restored and lacking alchemy had intervened in a fight.

Ed found himself slammed back into the brick wall and grunted as his feet slid out from underneath him. He pulled free and swung into a kick that was caught.

"Shit," he muttered and leaned forward attempting to head butt the guy. The man however was as slick as a snake and caught Ed by the back of his neck and shoved him face first into the wall. Ed managed to catch most of his weight with his hands before he found himself on the ground. He levered himself up and barely avoided a kick to his ribs. He grabbed the man's ankle and pulled, attempting to make the man become unbalanced. Instead he got a kick to his ribs with the other foot. Edward grunted and saw the man drawing an array on the wall.

He swore and bounced backwards attempting to avoid the spikes that surged up from the ground. There was a flash of heat and a dull throbbing in his side. Looking down for a brief moment he saw the flash of red and realized that he'd been hit. Ed danced backwards a second time managing to avoid the next attack. He was panting now though and without his alchemy he was at a disadvantage. He whirled around a corner and panted leaning up against the opposite wall. With a little bit of apprehension he looked down and grimaced at the wound. It would heal but it would be another scar. Grumbling beneath his breath he tore down the alleyway and into the street. In the process he nearly ran over the person who had been standing outside the alley.

Edward managed to swing himself about so that he didn't fall and the other person swayed just a bit before regaining firm ground. "Sorry!" he said quickly as he whipped to face the entrance and brace himself for the next attack. A man tore out of the alleyway and found himself running into Edward's fist, but that didn't stop him. He attempted to grab ahold of the young man's clothing and throw him. He managed to lift him but dropped him back to the ground and Edward rolled through the fall.

When he looked up the burly man had been subdued and was lying in the street apparently unconscious. A hand stuck itself into his line of sight and Ed looked up. He grasped the hand and let himself be pulled up.

"You look like a truck ran over you," the newly promoted Brigadier General Roy Mustang remarked with some amusement.

Ed glanced down at himself and sighed. Another good pair of clothes ruined. Al would most definitely lecture him later about that.

"Good to see you too," Ed replied slightly sarcastically.

Mustang gave him a slight smirk. "I thought that you were staying out of trouble, Edward?"

"Apparently, people have other plans for me." He glanced down at his side again and remarked a bit carefully. "For the moment though I probably should get this bandaged." He made a face. "I'm just glad it looks like it's not going to require stitches. That would have been a fine pain in my ass."

"In that case I will leave you to it. I have a meeting to attend to." With a slight wave of his hand Mustang disappeared into the crowded main street. Taking a deep breath Ed too headed into the thick of the crowd and made his way home.

It was about a week later that a knock came on their door and Ed saw Roy Mustang for the second time after his return to Central. Ed reluctantly placed his book aside and answered the door. To his surprise Mustang stood there holding a book under one arm. Ed motioned him in and shut the door behind him.

"What brought you all the way out here?" he asked.

"This." Roy held up the book. "Considering it had your notes and your name in it I thought you should have it back. One of the lab assistants found it in a cubbyhole in the lab he was working in."

Ed peered at it and said, "Huh," before shrugging and moving to put some tea on.

"Do you not want it?"

Ed's hand hesitated above the kettle that was whistling. "Do you want the honest answer or the half answer?"

"I'd prefer the honest answer but only if you want to tell me."

Ed took the kettle off the stove and poured the boiling water over the teabags in the cups. Edward put cream and sugar onto the tray and carried it out to the living room where Mustang sat on the sofa. Ed gestured to the tea and Roy poured in milk and a few cubes of sugar.

Ed only added the sugar and stared thoughtfully downwards. "In all honesty, no, I don't want the book back. It only serves to remind me of what I've lost. It's not exactly pleasant you know? And it's not like that it can be fixed. Losing my alchemy isn't simply patching up a wound. I gave it up to save Alphonse and that I don't regret in the least."

"You miss it."

"Of course I do. It was a part of me and being unable to perform alchemy is like a kick in the gut. Half the time I'm jealous of Al. I try not to be, I'm supposed to have matured after all. I can work on arrays and develop things, that's all still in my mind. I simply can't activate them anymore. I tried."

"Then to answer my question, you don't want it back?"

Ed looked at him. "No. I don't. If someone in the lab can use it, they can have it. I have no use for it anymore."

The third time Ed met Roy was at a local pub that served what Ed considered the best food all around. Roy joined Ed and Al that night for dinner. Ed found delight in talking to the Brigadier General – he was knowledgeable and wasn't exactly stupid. So, Ed found pleasure in the little conversations they had: ranging from alchemy to philosophy to science and back to philosophy then onto literature (that only last about five minutes, Ed had no use for fiction) before turning to food and good restaurants to eat at. Roy's mouth was quirked at one corner in amusement as Ed related one of the missions he'd been on. (Roy rather noticed some of the events he talked about had been completely omitted from the official report Ed had submitted.) By the way Ed was grinning he knew Roy knew that he'd been lying through his teeth in those reports.

As the evening ran long Roy offered to drive Ed home (who had been abandoned by Al and hour and a half previously) who accepted the offer. Roy hesitated for a moment after he opened Ed's door. Tonight's conversation had opened up his mind: Edward had matured into a lovely young man. A young man Roy thought he might be interested in pursuing. Ed paused as he reached his front steps and looked back with a half smile, "We should do this again."

"How about next week, same day, same time?"

Ed nodded and waved him off.

The fourth time Ed met Roy was on their first unofficial date. They had a pleasant dinner and chatted and before Ed walked up his porch steps Roy kissed him. Ed found Roy was a very good kisser. When Roy's tongue slipped into his mouth he couldn't help but startle in surprise. But after that Ed moved into the kiss, copying Roy's movements. Edward quickly learned that Roy was slightly more aggressive than he'd previously thought. One of Roy's hands was cupping Ed's neck and keeping his head tilted back while the other had wandered down Ed's back and sat at the curve of his spine at the base of his back. It felt like the kiss was going to go on forever. Ed could taste the lust, the passion, in the kiss as dominating as it was. And when Roy pulled away Ed reluctantly leaned back and watched him go, aching and needy.

What had started out as a simple and delightful kiss had slowly turned into something far more complicated than Edward Elric had anticipated.

The fifth time Ed met Roy went much the same way their first "date" had gone.

And then the sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth, tenth, eleventh, and twelfth dates ended the same way as the fifth.

On the thirteenth date (but not the thirteenth time they met, they'd been seeing much more of each other recently) Roy took Ed home.

And Ed supposed that's where it all began to fall apart. Or perhaps fall apart wasn't the right word. The word that he should have used was "where things began to come together in a mighty unexpected way that left Ed both confused and delighted". But that was a phrase, and not a word.

Having sex with Roy was like drowning and then coming back to life. (Ed would know, he'd almost drowned once.) He loved the way Roy treated him, so delicately (but not too delicately) like he was something special. He loved the way Roy talked to him as if they were equals. What had started as a simple kiss was no longer just a kiss anymore, but something that Ed couldn't stop if he wanted to.

His eyes met Roy's across the pillow and he grinned as he rolled onto his back and stared at the ceiling. Edward could still feel those intense eyes studying him. "You know if we hadn't met after I got into the fight this probably wouldn't have happened?" he turned his head to the side to get a good look at Roy.

Roy raised his eyebrows and shifted his weight forward on the bed. "And," he asked, "what is this that you speak of?"

Ed let his eyes narrow. "You know."

"Pretend I don't," Roy invited.

Ed pursued his lips, "Sex," he stated succinctly.

"Ahh, you think we would never have fallen into this if you hadn't seen me again?"

"Probably. I mean, we still don't get along great. We still argue and we don't even see each other every day of the week."

"What if we could?"

"What are you asking? Are you asking me to stay?"

"Is that what you want? To stay?" Roy asked softly.

Ed jerked up in the bed and glared down at the man. "See! You're doing it again! You're manipulating me! Even here – in bed with you!" he snarled angrily.

Roy sat up on his knees. "Do you think that's what I'm doing? Manipulating you?"

"Isn't it?"

"Maybe. But you tend to avoid the direct questions I ask. The only way to get an answer from you is to manipulate you. And it's not like I enjoy doing it."

Ed's eyes flared and he swung out of the bed, standing with the sheet pulled around him. "I hate it. Maybe you should try asking directly. You don't know that I wouldn't answer. You haven't known me in an intimate setting before this. I answer people I like. And right now? I hate you."

He turned towards the bathroom but didn't get far when Roy wrapped his arms around his waist and a voice whispered in his ear, "I am sorry. You can so temperamental sometimes – I was afraid of upsetting you."

Ed whirled around in his arms and glared up furiously. "Temperamental?"

Roy raised his eyebrows as Ed huffed with annoyance before admitting, "I guess I am…a little bit. But why would you be afraid of upsetting me? It's not like you could do anything to hurt my –" Ed paused and squinted at him. "Huh." He said. "That's interesting."

Roy's arms were curled around his torso and Ed had to admit he was enjoying it – a lot. And he also had to admit Roy had slightly hurt his feelings not even five minutes ago. And what did that mean? Was Roy more than an acquaintance? Did it mean Roy meant more to Ed than he thought? Did Ed want to stay? Was he in…love? As Ed looked up into Roy's face his heart gave a jolt that beat out a rhythm of "yes, yes, yes" and Edward in exasperation at his own inability to figure out his emotions threw his arms around Roy's neck and pulled him down into a kiss.

As Roy kissed him back Ed found himself snuggling delightfully into the heat of the bigger man. When he pulled back he could see the warmth in Roy's eyes. Perhaps the man wasn't in love with him yet. Maybe it wasn't time. Somehow, Ed couldn't care. Roy seemed perfectly happy with simply having him here.

"I guess the question I should be asking is," Ed began, "do you want me to stay?"

Roy let his hands trail down Ed's sides and untangled the sheets from around Ed's body leaving him naked.

"I think," Roy murmured, "you already know the answer to that."

That night instead of drowning he was freefalling - and he knew that Roy would catch him. Metaphorically speaking at least. If he ever fell in real life he could easily catch himself.

But maybe he could let Roy catch him once in a while. Ed rested his cheek on Roy's shoulder and felt the arm draped around his chest.

"Hey Roy?"

"Hmmm?"

"Do you think you could ever love me?"

Roy opened his eyes. "What do you think I was just doing?"

Ed shrugged and hunched his shoulders slightly, "Enjoying very good sex?"

Roy's mouth curved into a half smile. "Well, yes. It's more than that though. We're learning to love, Edward. It's not something of either of us is particularly good at. I'm manipulative at times, I can admit that, and you're very suspicious of anyone's good intentions. At times we're oil and water – and we won't agree. We rarely do. But I'm willing to work on it if you are."

Ed's fingers spread across Roy's chest. "When you first kissed me I thought it was something that was just to pass the time, something that didn't mean anything. A game – just for fun. And maybe it was. I didn't care. I was enamored with the idea that Roy fucking Mustang wanted me. That he wanted me. Since we're being honest and all I thought I should tell you that. But yes, of course I'm willing. I think I always was." Ed smacked Roy's chest as a grin grew over the older man's face. "Stop that! I know what you're thinking! I dare you to say it!"

They dissolved into soft laughter and Ed's heart beat with a new rhythm that he couldn't identify.

Ed gently pushed his feet against the porch floor to keep the swing going. He watched the comings and goings of the street, watching, waiting. And then as day was turning to dusk a smile flickered across his lips as someone paused at the gate. Ed pushed off the swing and ran, tangling his arms around the other man. They stood there in the dying light, kissing.

Roy raised his head and smiled. "Hello to you too."

"Welcome home," Ed told him cheerfully.

"How did your day go?"

"I think I've finally extrapolated…" his voice trailed off as they entered the house leaving the street in quiet once more.


End file.
